In October 2015, President Nelson, who was the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles at the time, gave a talk titled, “"A Plea to My Sisters” in which he promised the women of the Church that when they lived their lives “distinct and different—in happy ways” that the“"Holy Ghost will magnify your influence in an unprecedented way!” In fact, a part of the Magnify Manifesto this year was to LIVE DIFFERENT. So what does it mean to live differently?
This week on the Magnify Podcast, Lisa Valentine Clark answers important questions about what it means to her to live differently. The following is an excerpt from that episode:
How do you find the courage and the confidence to live differently in every aspect of your life?
“Well I'm a little obsessed with Paul,—not just because my late-husband portrayed Paul in the Bible Videos—but that has a big part in it because when he was preparing for that, we studied Paul for a year. My deep dive led me to study the body of Christ that's found in 1 Corinthians. The first thing I try to remember about recognizing our differences is that every part of your body is different and has a different function. If we all tried to be the same, it would be grotesque and wouldn't work. So if I ever feel alone or isolated because I feel like nobody understands my life, I try to remember that we all have unique talents and identities that we are expected to use in our sphere, and that will look totally different from person to person.”
When living differently, how do you navigate real life, everyday decisions?
“I think that everyone will have a deeply personal answer to that question, but I will tell you one story. When my dear husband, Christopher, was in the throes of ALS, knowing there was no cure, and it was a pretty dark and depressing time, he once said to me, ‘I see how unfair life is when I compare my life to others. That's when it drives me nuts:when I compare my life to someone who seems to have everything. But when I don't compare my life and I just live within my own little world, I have a great life, and I look at how far we've come.’ His life was probably not an envious life, but he was creating art, his friends were making him laugh, and we were teasing our kids. No one lived a more different life than Chris Clark.”
How does knowing who you are and your divine identity help you live differently?
“Fundamentally, it gives me a perspective of what this world is. Life will break your heart in a million different ways. It's totally shattered mine, but knowing that I am beloved by my heavenly parents is a game changer because it focuses my attention. Nothing is theoretical for me. I have put all of my life into living as authentically as I can with as much reverence for God as I can. I hope for a lot of things that I have not seen. Hope is what helps me live.”
To hear the full episode, check out this episode of the Magnify Podcast.
